The Columbia

[Guest Quaxo]

I just wanted to post a thought for the 7 astronauts who died in the Columbia accident today... I heard the news not long ago, and I'm still so shocked. This is such a sad day :-(Cristian

[Christopher Low 5,354]

It is indeed a sad day, Cristian. I switched on my car radio at around 15:30 UT, and I was horrified to hear the report that Columbia had broken up during atmospheric re-entry. Shuttle flights have become so routine since Discovery took America back into space in 1989, that another tragedy seemed almost unthinkable.I fear that this may have serious consequences for ISS and any future Shuttle missions.Chris Low,ENGLAND.

[Guest twsimfan]

A sad day indeed. One that as a major fan of the space program since the late 1950's, before the manned flights, shakes me to the core.

[Guest Robert_S]

Like Tom, I've been a close follower of space exploration since the late 50's. My real-life career was spent in aerospace, and it pains me greatly to experience this. The loss of the crew and the resulting misery of their families and colleagues is terrible, but so is the loss of Columbia itself.I will never fail to support the space program, as I feel it is mankind's destiny to push the envelope, expanding our knowledge where and when we can.My prayers go out to all involved.[table][tr][td valign=top]http://www.avsim.com/other/usaribbon.gif[/td][td valign=center]Bob "FlyBert" StilesAVSIM Moderator[/b][/td][/tr][/table]

[Guest Ansgar]

Hi Cristian,I second all above! We flightsimmers are sure one of that sort people who feel very close to that 7 astronauts. Pilots are the first people which "climbed into the air" and astronauts are the "highest level" pilots can reach in their history of live, so short: a small dream of the most of us!I for my part visited cape canaveral several years ago, when I was in the US, and enjoyed the space center and also a great IMAX film (a relative new technologie for that time, with the title "the dream of spaceflight" or so) there very much. My thinkings are with the 7 astronauts and their families! :-(Ansgar A.